TAMPA, Fla — A 16-year-old boy has been arrested after police said he fired a shot, which hit a teen girl in the back on Friday across the street from Robinson High School in Tampa.
The shooting happened at around 8:40 a.m. Police said shortly after two teenage girls engaged in a "pre-planned" fight at Arbor Flats apartment complex on Manhattan Avenue, the 16-year-old boy wearing a ski mask fired one gunshot.
The bullet struck a 17-year-old girl who was walking away to go across the street to school after the fight, Police Chief Mary O'Connor explained in an update Wednesday. The teen boy was related to another girl who was in the fight, according to authorities.
According to O'Connor, the 16-year-old boy's mother cooperated with police and allowed detectives to search her apartment where they found the gun that matched the one used in the shooting.
When confronted with the information, the teen reportedly confessed to the crime.
He's facing charges of second-degree attempted murder with a firearm, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery with great bodily harm.
"The point I want to make about this case is that this 16-year-old boy's life is forever changed because he made a very, very bad decision," the police chief said. "These children that are making these bad decisions cannot take these decisions back."
The 17-year-old girl who was injured in the shooting was transported to the hospital in critical condition, but O'Connor said she will survive after receiving surgery.
Witnesses told police the fight stemmed from an argument over the teen boy buying marijuana from the 17-year-old girl with a counterfeit $100 bill on separate occasions.
One day before the fight, a friend confronted the 16-year-old boy over the counterfeit money and fought him too, police said. That's when his teenage relative asked the 17-year-old girl to meet at the apartment complex to fight the next day.
“We are disappointed in the senseless violence that occurred off campus near Robinson High School last week," Hillsborough County School District leaders said in a statement on the shooting. "While students on campus were not in danger, we must work together as a community to help our children make smart and healthy choices.
"We have student services teams at every school available to talk to students for any reason if they need help. We will continue to educate our students about the importance of talking to a trusted adult if they are in trouble or need resources to avoid making bad choices.”